Black Friday and Christmas might feel rather far away if you peak at the calendar, but that is not stopping manufacturers from already trying to entice consumers to spend earlier this year. Does it make sense to shop so early when all of the best deals will drop right before Thanksgiving and Black Friday? The reality is that sales are soft and consumers have been holding off on big ticket items which is starting to scare both retailers and manufacturers.
Some of the best sales of the year actually happened this summer and if you were smart enough to jump at the best TV, loudspeaker, and earbud deals — you may have made the right choice.
With the kids back in school, parents are starting to think about what they may need to order in time for Christmas if specific categories are going to be more popular than others and manufacturers may not have as much inventory as you might hope — a number of companies in the A/V category have let it drop in private conversations that they are being more cautious so that they don’t end up with too much inventory in January or are forced to make smaller margins this Christmas.
Which categories are going to be really hot this year? Let’s take a look.
JBL Modern Audio System
JBL is the global leader in high-performance audio. The JBL Stage 2 Speakers + MA receivers are the first component audio system designed by JBL from top to bottom, bringing a legacy of sound-making into living rooms.
Eversolo Music Streamer
Featuring mainstream music services and a 6″ large LCD color touchscreen, DMP-A6 offers you high-quality music streaming right at your fingertips.
It has ES9038Q2Mx2 professional DAC, exquisite user interface, rich inputs and outputs, powerful local library management… all makes it an excellent choice for music lovers.
$859 $769 at Amazon
Open Ear Earbuds
Beyerdynamic’s VERIO 200 wireless earbuds won our open-ear challenge, offering the best sound quality, comfort, fit and call quality among seven competitors. Available now in black, cream or sport colors.
Sony QD-OLED
As the winner of “King of TV” for the second year in a row, the Sony BRAVIA XR A95L Series QD-OLED 4K TV is the best you can get right now. Available in 55″, 65″ and 77″ screen sizes.
Beats Pill
The Beats Pill is a portable Bluetooth speaker that plays seriously loud. Listen all day with 24 hours of battery life or combine two together for stereo listening. Works seamlessly with iPhone as well as Android phones and comes in red, black or champagne gold.
AirPods 4
Apple’s latest AirPods 4 come with or without active noise cancellation in an all-new more comfortable design for 2024. Otherwise both earbuds are the same, including support for Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking for playing games or listening to Dolby Atmos music.
Hisense 120-inch Laser TV
The Hisense 120-inch L5H Ultra Short Throw (UST) 4K Laser TV includes both the projector and ALR cinema screen. Just place the projector inches away from the wall below the screen for a massive 120-inch viewing experience.
AirTag
Apple’s AirTag is one thing you don’t need until you really need it. Place it in a suitcase, backpack, handbag or even attach to your keychain so you’ll never lose track of your stuff. Plus get automatic reminders when things get left behind. Purchase individually or in 4-packs for a better deal.
Need more gift giving ideas?
Disclosure: The products listed above are approved by our Editors, but may be requested by our sponsors. When links to buy are provided, we’ll direct you to the lowest price at time of publication. In doing so, eCoustics may earn a small commission from the associated retailer if purchased.
ORT
September 16, 2023 at 4:50 pm
Some nice stuff here!
Sooooo then…I showed this to my wife and somehow she thought they were kitchen appliances and as such “our” new Refrigerator, Oven, Dishwasher and Range Hood (no more microwave for you!) will be here later this month.
No sidecar for me (and our grandchildren or even a dog). No more new (or “used”) turntables either. No CD players as she says I hardly use the 5 I have (they are not good looking enough!). No matching Marantz Stereo 70s to match the-not-gonna-get-it silver/gold CD60…
$$$$$ may not seem like much to many but I can assure you it is a LOT for me but we have been together for well over 40+ years now.
So I’ve got that going for me…Which is nice.
At least there are two (2!) icemakers in the icebox! HUZZAH!!
“My mind is a raging torrent, flooded with rivulets of thought cascading into a waterfall of creative alternatives.”
ORT